will 2009 be the year of the traitorous homo

[smileyeagle1021]

Ugh, it's 3 months into the year and already in two separate TV series there has been gay guys who either have betrayed a father figure in their life or are getting ready to. Also, so far, those are the only two gay character (of any note) that I've seen in any major TV series (Peter getting injected with the gay gene doesn't count )

I have to agree with Howie from BHC "There isn't a movie in the cinema canon that depicts a gay character that we would aspire to be. What are our options... noble, suffering AIDS victims, the friends of noble suffering AIDS victims, sex addicts, common street hustlers and the newest addition to the lot, stylish confidantes to lovelorn women. Just once I would like to see someone who is not sick, hasn't been laid in about three months and is behind on his student loans."
The real newest addition is backstabbing children... can we please just get a real person and not a stereotype... pretty please.

[protege]

The real newest addition is backstabbing children... can we please just get a real person and not a stereotype... pretty please.

Problem is, that shit doesn't sell movies. As much as people want to deny it, they *want* to see the stereotype.

[AFPheonix]

Blacks can barely get a normal portrayal in media, either. They're either stereotypical thugs or the token black guy half the time, and they've been safe to portray in media longer than gays. It'll probably be a long time before you guys get a fair shake too.

[DesignFox]

Rarely can women either. Always either the slutty bitch super villain, super slut superhero etc. etc. (though I am pleased that some of this is somewhat changing...gradually)

Life's just not fair. For any of us.

I try to vote with my wallet and just don't buy shit that pisses me off.

[Seshat]

Dr Who/Torchwood has bisexual and gay characters, and black, and female characters. And all of them are human*. Fallible, capable of heroism, capable of screwing up... the whole lot.


* except the aliens, but they (for the most part) have human traits too.

[Dreamstalker]

I figure that stereotypical characters are much easier to write--minimal thought required and less risk of accidentally offending the majority of viewers

[Slytovhand]

How many shows out there are just about 'normal' people?? Who is 3 months without sex and behind on rent? (and who's not trying to be funny all the time - <cue canned laughter>)

[smileyeagle1021]

How many shows out there are just about 'normal' people?? Who is 3 months without sex and behind on rent? (and who's not trying to be funny all the time - <cue canned laughter>)

I've seen a few... sadly most of them get canceled despite the fact that I've loved them.
Book of Daniel was great... but it offended conservative Christians.
Firefly was another good one... yeah, they were all a bit weird, but they were real... and it was canceled... well because Fox sucks.
BSG actually did a decent job... other than the whole guy gets betrayed by a woman and becomes gay stereotype... and then turns that betrayal into hatred of a father figure (btw, why are gay guys supposed to hate their father... I know I have less the pleasant feelings for my father, but that's because the bastard abandoned my mother... I'd hate him even if I was straight).

eta- to clarify... I was talking about 'normal' people... though Book of Daniel did have a gay character.

[AdminAssistant]

I hardly ever watch sitcoms. I stick to crime dramas (NCIS, especially. Tuesday's episode was sooooo good!) And Food Network, of course.

And yes, stereotypes are easier to write for and more palatable for the mass market. Luckily, there have been a few very positive shows (queer as folk, The L Word, etc.) but they've all been cable shows.

Theatre is way ahead of the curve in the realistic portrayal of gay characters, IMO.

[tropicsgoddess]

Six Feet Under was the only show I was able to watch without seeing any stereotypes of any kind. The cool part was how two of the main characters were gay (this is coming from a straight woman) and even better was how the director/creator of the show Alan Ball was openly gay.

[AdminAssistant]

...the director/creator of the show Alan Ball was openly gay.

Playwright.

The only one of his I can think of off the top of my head is Five Women Wearing the Same Dress. Also wrote American Beauty if I remember correctly.

[anriana]

I've seen a few... sadly most of them get canceled despite the fact that I've loved them.
Book of Daniel was great... but it offended conservative Christians.
Firefly was another good one... yeah, they were all a bit weird, but they were real... and it was canceled... well because Fox sucks.
BSG actually did a decent job... other than the whole guy gets betrayed by a woman and becomes gay stereotype... and then turns that betrayal into hatred of a father figure (btw, why are gay guys supposed to hate their father... I know I have less the pleasant feelings for my father, but that's because the bastard abandoned my mother... I'd hate him even if I was straight).

eta- to clarify... I was talking about 'normal' people... though Book of Daniel did have a gay character.

Gaeta has been bisexual since the beginning, according to the creators. He was in love with Baltar, who rejected him, then with that Eight, then with that one guy. And I personally don't think Adama was ever his father figure, other than in the general sense that Adama and Roslin are the parents of the whole ship. Gaeta and Adama only interacted in the CIC; they didn't have the relationship that Adama & Starbuck or even Adama & Dualla ever did.